


By Chance, Charming Strangers

by Lunatic_Lullaby



Category: DCU (Comics), Teen Titans (Comics)
Genre: Bats at sea, Depression, God Zatara stop winking already, M/M, Post-Infinite Crisis (DCU), Pre-One Year Later (DCU), Secret Identities, Tim did not sign up for this, Zach goes after what he wants, cheesy flirtations, grief recovery, shameless egotism
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-06-26
Updated: 2014-06-26
Packaged: 2018-02-06 08:03:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,711
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1850581
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lunatic_Lullaby/pseuds/Lunatic_Lullaby
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After losing Kon and Steph, Tim is fighting to put himself back together. Dick is determined to help his little brother get back on his feet, Bruce is counting his blessings that both his sons are alive and the smarmy magician who's performing on their cruise ship happens to be an ex-member of the Teen Titans who's disenchanted with superheroing. . .and keeps unwittingly flirting with a Robin to distract them both from their troubles.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>"Are you playing the clown for me on purpose?"</p>
<p>"That depends," Zatara wavered, stance shifting in a clear consideration of whether he should move on or stay. "Do you like clowns better than magicians?"</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Charming Strangers

**Author's Note:**

> This is set after Infinite Crisis, during the missing year. Zach has joined and then parted ways with the Teen Titans, while Tim's having his year-long family bonding vacation with Bruce and Dick.
> 
> For any readers who don't know or remember - Zatara's incantations can be read backwards. Sometimes they're also written in backwards *order* in the comics but here they read from left to right with only the letters reversed, ekil os.

"Tim, hey," Dick called, sitting on the side of Tim's bed and rubbing the back of his hand until Tim stopped staring at their cabin's ceiling and made eye contact. Dick's eyes were very serious as he threatened, "I'm going to make sock puppets soon."

"I'm fine," Tim said, running on automatic.

"I think you're hereby forbidden from saying that," Dick chided gently. "It's getting worn out."

"I'm okay," he tried again, sounding more tired and miserable.

"That doesn't work either. Try it this way; _I'm coming to eat lunch in the dining room."_    He raised his eyebrows expectantly.

"Not today, Dick."

"Timmy, part of the reason we're doing a cruise is to get real air. _Ocean air._ You're missing out."

"Bruce wanted to keep my mind stimulated so that I'd be less likely to become depressed," Tim corrected.  He was so exhausted by the need to hold onto any last pretense that he wasn't feeling adrift but Bruce - he worried.  Too much.  More than he'd ever done before Tim was orphaned.

"It's really not working," Dick observed wryly. So far his brother had spent the majority of their luxury cruise - a sort of vacation from their vacation, without any mountains to climb or forests to navigate - holed up in their cabin, staying up all night pretending to read and then catching some scant hours of sleep during the day.  He was better than he'd been two months earlier, when it felt like he and Bruce were just travelling with Tim-shaped luggage.  He'd now interact normally if he was prodded to and he checked off all the boxes for maintaining a healthy body by showering, stretching and eating at set times like a good little clockwork boy - but Tim's drive, the curiosity and burning intelligence that had always powered him, was visibly diminished by the shadows in his eyes and he wanted nothing for his own sake, besides sleep and time alone.  Dick would give anything just to see him excited over something again.

"I don't know how to not be this way," Tim said quietly. "What do you think you would you do? If it was Babs and Roy."

Dick leaned over him, holding his hand properly. "When it was my parents, I did this," he said, squeezing Tim's hand and nodding at the bed, "for a little while. Weeks, really, but it got a little bit easier every day. You know why."

"Robin," Tim said, the barest undertone of reverence in his voice.  His hero, his church, his way of life.

Dick smiled, a brief flash of old joy. _"Bruce._ And Gotham. I found something new and challenging to fill my life with."

Tim closed his eyes, feeling ashamed and lost.  He had all of those things already and still couldn't pull himself together.

"I know, that doesn't help the kid who's already Robin." He ran a hand through his hair as he tried to think of something else. "When it was Donna," he carefully recalled the loss which had left the second greatest chasm in his life, "I went to pieces and cut everyone out of my life."

Tim's eyes snapped open. "Oh," he said as he remembered one of the big catalysts for his brother's Hell year.

"Yeah. So you could try that approach. I mean, you saw how great it worked out for me," he mocked himself with a dull grin.

Which was funny because Dick had tried to shelter Tim from knowing most of what he'd gone through at the time but Bruce's undivided attention whenever Dick was talking - or laughing, or even looking away from them at whichever natural wonder Bruce expected them all to be spiritually _cured_ by - said that they had come a lot closer than usual to losing Nightwing.  It was something Tim wished he couldn't detect because the idea of losing _Dick -_

Tim had seen Dick's chemical burns from rushing into a live nuclear bomb site without any protective gear.  He'd spoken to Rose Wilson, before they left on their world tour, when Dick was tying things up for what was left of the Titans after losing half the team's roster.  He'd been completely unwilling to leave Tim alone for more than a few minutes at a time so he was standing there when she had talked about Dick living undercover with Slade.  And that was - they have a complicated history of team-ups and betrayals, Tim knows that, but it was still _Deathstroke_ and was his brother secretly insane? 

"I'll come to dinner," Tim relented, because he was lucky enough to have Dick there, trying, _big brothering,_ and he didn't really want to stay alone in his own mind for so long that he decided to follow Dick's example and shack up with the Riddler or something when the time came for Bruce and Dick to go back to their normal lives and Tim was - living on his own again with a new fake relative to sign his paperwork?  Emancipated?  He hadn't decided.

Dick smiled at half-wattage.  "Seven hours later than I was hoping for but I'll take it."

_________________

 _"Sesor otni sevod,"_ the Great Zatara commanded, and drank in the awed wonder of the crowd as the white flowers bloomed into doves. He looked over the room with a stage smile and detached pride; this cruise ship was a small-time venue but it was always gratifying to bring real magic to people who could only dream of it in their own boring lives. _"Sevod otni ittefnoc,"_ he called as the birds flew over the audience, and they burst into a sparkling rainbow of colored confetti, showering down upon his fans. He felt a spark of tender amusement for the youths holding out their hands to catch it with wide smiles of enchanted joy but his eyes searched for the least affected of them. In the back he spotted a boy about his age who was sitting with some older relatives; they all appeared to be only mildly engaged in his performance and that just _wouldn't do._

"Now, I must ask one of you to assist me with my next fantastic feat," he announced, immediately seeing hands go up with excited squeals. Normally he would have his assistant Bunny to aid him, but she'd gone to visit her family while he had been expected to be engaged with - other things. His short-term employment upon the cruise hadn't been planned. He had needed something to occupy his time, and here it was, a few weeks performing on a ship filled with passengers who had deep pockets and they would all leave as adoring fans, whether they had heard of him before or not.

Pulling a sheer blue kerchief from his sleeve, he quietly instructed it to, _"Ylf ot ym nesohc yob,"_ and watched with satisfaction as it leapt into the air and gracefully sailed to the table in the back corner of the room. The teen ducked down with a blush as it landed in front of him. "Ah, _there's_ my assistant. Please, come join me on stage."

He watched the kid turn to what was probably his older brother, looking like he wanted help in an escape plan. The twenty-something man didn't seem to be much help though, grinning and nudging the teen to get up. Zatara smirked; the reluctant ones could be rather amusing to toy with. "There's no need to be shy," he called out to him teasingly.

Glaring a little, the boy got up and strode toward the stage determinedly, as though he just wanted to get things over with as quickly as possible. The audience applauded his bravery, as he went up the steps and stopped just a few feet away from the magical Zatara, trying not to look too sullen.

He was pleased to see that his assistant truly was _lovely_ up close. "Thank you," he said wryly as he met the teen's snapping blue eyes, "and your name please?"

He pressed his lips together, and Zatara wondered if he'd be a poor sport and refuse to give it.

"Tim," he relented, with the greatest reluctance. He shifted as though trying to relax.

"Tim," Zatara repeated loudly, for the benefit of the people further back in the room. Turning to the crowd as though forgetting him, he explained that he was going to levitate his 'volunteer.' In actuality he shifted the air around a person, essentially blowing them up, since there was no way for him to use magic directly on a fellow human being. However Bunny insisted that offering to 'blow people up' would only entertain himself and he didn't need to be told that asking for 'a volunteer to blow' would be the end of his career.

The boy appeared hesitant, which Zatara felt a bit smug about. "No need to look frightened," he told him, and some of the audience tittered in amusement. Closing the distance between them, he put his hands on Tim's shoulders and firmly guided him over to stand in the center of the stage. He flippantly patted his chest in a gesture of reassurance, noting with surprise that he was rather well-built for the son of a rich man. "Just relax, and try to hold still. There's no reason for worry."

He got a quick, tense nod in response.

Stepping back, Zatara stood at an angle so that he could look directly at Tim while still allowing the audience a good view of his motions. _"Ria deeps otni dniw,"_ he incanted with a sweeping wave of his arms. A wind came into being, blowing across the stage, just fast enough to be heard and felt by the tables closest to the stage. _"Dniw elcric Mit."_

Zatara took a moment to admire Tim as his inky black hair became windswept, his clothes hugging his body more tightly. The other teen blinked at the sensation curiously.

 _"Dniw ylwols tfil Mit,"_ he intoned, his heart skipping a beat as he watched his magic work. Tim was slowly raised from the stage floor, his hands held out in an instinctive grasp for balance. Zatara grinned triumphantly and gestured to showcase his achievement as Bunny normally would. The cheers of the room washed over him and he decided that this was going to get worked into his bigger shows with some extra 'oomph' to the trick. It was a good thing Bunny didn't get air sickness, because he could be far more daring with his paid assistant than with an audience member.

Once Tim was several feet up, Zatara felt that was enough excitement for a reluctant volunteer to have to endure. The experience was meant to be fun for him as well, after all. _"Dniw ylwols rewol Mit ot eht egats,"_ he said loudly, so that no one would doubt he intended for the display to end. His arms followed Tim's descent as though conducting his safe landing. The wind gave out when he was half a foot from the floor, causing Zatara to hold his breath, but Tim managed the landing without a stumble, much to his relief. Clearly he needed to swap _'ylwols'_ for _'yltneg'_ in the last incantation.

Smiling appreciatively, Zach prompted the audience, "A hand for my lovely assistant." Then he stepped up and offered his own hand for Tim to clasp, as the onlookers gave their applause. As they shook, Zatara conjured a white rose with his free hand, seemingly from thin air, and held it out. "Thank you for your help."

Blushing faintly in embarrassment, Tim accepted the rose. Zatara leaned down over the hand he still held in his own and made a show of pressing a kiss to the back of it. The crowd giggled at the antics of the silly magician, while his volunteer went a deeper shade of red.


	2. Forward Clowns

"Looks like you've made a new friend," Dick teased as soon as Tim had escaped the spotlight of being the evening's entertainment.

Tim gave him a tired glare. "That felt dirty," he complained. His stomach had done an unexpected flip at the look in Zatara's eyes but that was only a greater source of annoyance; he didn't appreciate being flirted with as a joke.

"You blushed."

"It was _highly embarrassing,"_ Tim stressed. Sitting back down between his traitor of a brother and Bruce, he eyed the rose, holding it in his lap beneath the table's edge.  He'd heard Zatara was performing but he hadn't expected to actually care, let alone be noticed by him and have to interact.

Dick watched him fiddle with the flower for a moment. "He's on your team now. You should get to know him in case you two have to work together."

"He was _briefly_ a Titan. Word from the Tower is that he probably won't be back."

"There isn't meant to be any word from the Titans," Bruce interjected, mildly censuring.

"It wasn't a business call," Tim assured him. "And it was Dick's fault."

Bruce looked to his eldest son, eyebrow raised and an upward tilt to the corner of his mouth. Since settling into their new mission of family globetrotting, he was more welcoming towards Robinly distractions than he had been in years.

"I'm just keeping an open line with Rose Wilson, since I'm the one who brought her to the Tower in the first place," Dick explained. "Which is good because so far she's one of the few kids willing to stick around long enough to give coherent updates." He turned back to his brother with an optimistic smile. "But once a Titan, always a Titan. We're a forever deal! There's no escaping us."

Tim cracked the barest of smirks. "Are you writing the promotional materials? Because I can understand the low turnout of new members if this is the pitch they've been using."

"My pitching is fantastic," Dick hotly contested, and both Bruce and Tim let themselves wince.

"There will be no more wine with dinners," Bruce warned.

"It takes a lot more than two glasses to get me tipsy, and you know that. You just don't like me punning in public."

"You might consider not making sexually explicit remarks in front of your father and a teenaged minor."

Tuning out their banter, Tim's eyes settled to blankly regard the rose. He tried to frame the young man on stage professionally, as Zatanna's cousin, a co-worker, a fellow hero. The back of his hand felt marked with a phantom touch as he remembered watching Zatara press a warm smirk against his skin.

"Oh, please. I bet Timmy's heard worse from the Birds. I used to hear worse from _you,_ when we were out at parties."

"I will not be held accountable for the things Bruce Wayne does in public," Bruce objected.

Dick rolled his eyes and turned to his little brother with a manic grin, hoping for back-up only to catch him zoned out again. He followed his line of sight and felt a little relief when it only led him back to the stage and Zatara, thinking that at least this time he might have slipped into zombieland for a _good_ reason.

________________

The next morning, creeping towards noon, Tim woke up to find the white rose in a single stem vase with water on his bedside table. When he glared at Dick for the offense he just radiated sunshine and innocence at his little brother until Tim gave up and got dressed without mentioning it.

When _Dick_ mentioned it, he took the detective novel he was reading and left the cabin to escape his teasing.

He did know why Dick wanted to be sure Tim could still make new friends. The ability to form bonds with others was high up on Nightwing's list of vital survival skills because for Dick, losing everything meant the desperate need to start gathering up something new. Being idle or alone, having the spaces left behind go unfilled, was a recipe for emotional disaster. That was why he wanted to see that Tim was still capable of picking himself up and _living,_ not just meandering and pushing through.

But the raised eyebrows and needling over Zatara's _romantic_ nonsense was only the work of a troublemaking brother who enjoyed messing with him.

After grabbing a quick mid-morning coffee, Tim went out on deck and got settled in a lounger, taking in some sun for the first time since they had boarded the ship. He was peacefully lost in his story for a few chapters, enjoying the fresh air (Dick was right, any clean air in a Gotham boy's lungs should be appreciated) before his mind started to wander, coming back to a dare he had been giving himself from the start of their journey that he felt more hesitant over with time. He idly took out his phone, no longer believing he would actually use it but pushing the buttons to bring Cassie's number up out of habit.

The lounge deck provided peace, quiet and privacy from his fellow Bats, so he tried once more to push himself into doing something simple but terrifying - all he had to do was hit the call button and then not hang up like a coward.  It was easy.  He could do it.

　

"Angry girlfriend?"

Tim startled, pocketed his phone and scowled, internally cursing at his luck and how _lax_ he was becoming without the Mission in his life.

"Sorry," Zatara apologized, clearly only for form's sake, standing at the foot of Tim's lounger and looking as if he intended to stay there awhile. "It's just that most people don't hold staring contests with their cells for quite so long unless there are relationship woes. Or life-absorbing games but since your thumbs weren't moving, I'm guessing that's not the case."

"It's a private matter."

"Worried she'll see the video of us flirting on stage?"

"What?"

"It's on Youtube," Zatara informed him. "One of the guests' doing, not mine."

"I wasn't flirting," Tim denied, feeling blindsided.

"Well I was," he maintained, shameless, "and _you_ were blushing so prettily that no one else is going to know the difference."

Tim's lips parted in shock and he noted the way Zatara eyed his mouth in response.  He was as outrageous a flirt as Kon used to be in their Young Justice days. It hadn't occurred to Tim that the act from the night before could in the least way be _genuine._ "Prettily?" he challenged.

"Adorably, even. Or should I say that you have the most _masculine_ blush I've ever seen?" Zach wondered, an eyebrow raised derisively. "That isn't very honest, poetic or charming, is it?"

"I. I am not here to be charmed," Tim told him, cursing at himself for stammering.

"Fair enough," he relented with a casual shrug, "I'm not here to harass handsome guys. Gods know I get enough of that myself."

Tim laughed incredulously at how self-satisfied Zatara sounded, only to see a spark of deeper satisfaction in his expression. "Are you playing the clown for me on purpose?"

"That depends," Zatara wavered, stance shifting in a clear consideration of whether he should move on or stay. He'd only come over because of the forlorn look on a stranger's face and he didn't normally hit on anyone more than twice without some encouragement on their part but - well, Tim was fighting a smile, which was a job well done on its own, and he was in need of a distraction.  "Do you like clowns better than magicians?"

"They are _slightly_ less creepy. But maybe you could try swallowing a swor- oh whoa, double entendre road, never mind, _not_ intentional!" He clasped a hand to the side of his face, burning up in embarrassment. Too much time with Dick and he could just die right there, _look at what he's doing._ He should have stuck with plain old 'buzz off.'

Zatara was delighted by the gaffe. "No, go on. You like the sword swallowers? Really? Because I've been known to handle some heavy blades with great skill. Would you like a demonstration?"

He peered up at him in wary fascination. "This wouldn't be any better if I had said lion tamer, would it?"

"Not at all.  Why, does your wild side need some taming?" he asked lasciviously, with a heavy-lidded smolder that was _too much_ to be anything but a joke. "Or do you just like to play games with whips?"

"Fire-breather?" Tim tried again.

"Can you even handle a line about how hot my mouth is?"

"Ah." He covered his own mouth with his hand, now feeling more amused than embarrassed. "I guess strong-man is off the list too. My only safe bet would be to prefer bearded ladies."

Zatara made a face. "That's one I can't work with, no. I could grow a beard," he amended, "but I'm not sure I'd want to become a woman just to try and earn a kiss from you."

"I never said anything about kissing."

"There's a restaurant one deck down that serves the most delicious desserts you can find in the middle of the Atlantic," Zatara soldiered on.

Tim raised an eyebrow.

"There is also a funny, gorgeous, eloquent young man who is inviting you to have lunch with him there."

Snorting, he opened his mouth to say no, realized he was reflexively smiling around the denial that was on the tip of his tongue and paused. What else was he going to do with himself? Continue ignoring his book so he could actively _not call_ someone? Go back to the cabin to nap away his discontentment? The second option sounded more likely and he thought of Dick's worried eyes.

"I could use a little funny," he conceded.

________________

It was less a restaurant and more a faux diner that had been set up to resemble a fifties soda shop.  Overlooking the family pool, it was closed off from the weather by a wall of picture windows. There were vintage signs on the walls, red and white booths and a dozen chrome bar stools with red vinyl cushions at the counter. Tim guessed it was designed with younger guests in mind, since it was one of the few venues on the ship that didn't serve alcohol.

They sat at the bar and ordered a basket of fries and two milkshakes, mint for Zatara and vanilla for Tim, which prompted the magician to say _vanilla mint is my favorite flavor_ with a quick flirtatious leer that nearly made Tim knock his glass over. Every time his amusement came through Zatara puffed up more, peacock proud and eyes shining.

"Are you wearing contacts?" Tim asked.

"No, my eyes are only this enchanting by _natural_ design. Why?"

"Last night they were hazel. Now they're," he waved a hand dismissively, as if he didn't really care _what_ color the sparkle aimed at him came in, "grey-blue?"

"Ah. I can't say why."

"It's a trade secret?"

"A _mystery._ I don't know why they've been changing color. Or how - I can't affect other humans with my magic and apart from this quirk, that rule applies to me as well. It's been happening for about a year now; my magic grew exponentially and this was a side-effect. They're blue normally," he offered with a careless shrug.

"Are you sure you can't affect people?"

"Sure enough. There are ways around the rule, of course. I can still make you fly," he reminded him with a wink.

Tim half-grinned at the red counter in front of him and shook his head minutely. "You're terrible."

"You're _tempting,"_ Zatara retorted with a half-shrug.  "You blush too easily, I can't resist."

"Oh my god."

"Would you prefer polite distance? I can make small talk and pretend you aren't a sweet sight to behold?"

"Please," he choked. "I - I am _not -"_

"You've never been flirted with this aggressively before, have you?  Breathe, beautiful," he mercilessly teased, his smile sharpened by the playfulness of a cat batting at a mouse.

"This was such a bad idea," Tim remarked into the palms of his hands, refusing to look at him.

"Wait, wait," Zach soothed, fighting down his amusement.  "I can behave, honestly."  He decided to prove himself with the promised small talk.  "We're having great weather lately, aren't we? Three whole days without a storm."

Tim nodded, face still red.

"I have an affinity with the elements, but being out on the ocean in a thunderstorm feels so intense. Are you comfortable at sea?"

"Yes - no, not really. I'd rather fly - _don't say anything_ \- and I'm not very good with inactivity. Being in the air is exciting in a good way but out here, it's only a rush when I wonder what I would do if we started to sink or were attacked by pirates."

Zach laughed. "So what would you do?"

"Well, I guess I could knock on _your_ door," he deflected.

"Ooh, look who's finally come to the table."

"I meant because you're a superhero."

"Sure you did."

"And what's a superhero doing on a cruise ship anyway? Is there a criminal on board?"

"Statistically speaking? Absolutely. We're talking about a ship filled with old and new money. I'd bet my life there are thefts and con jobs taking place."

"That's putting a lot of faith in humanity, Zatara."

"Zach, please. Or just _The Great,_ whichever you prefer."

"So are you doing anything about those bad guys, Zach?"

"I'm on _vacation._ If something attacks the ship, I'll help. Otherwise, right now the only person I _might_ be persuaded to guard from naively stumbling into evil is sitting next to me."

"What about all the sweet old ladies on board?"

"I swear I won't let them get you," he promised with his hand over his heart.

"My hero," Tim dryly retorted.

An unexpected flash of annoyance crossed Zach's face. "I just need a break from heroics for now. Not that I wasn't suited to it but - I don't know if you've read the online news about my time with the Titans?"

"My brother did. He just said you left not long after joining."

"Yes. Well, it was not quite all I had hoped for. Right now, I'm filling in time that I had thought would need to be spent with them by scheduling last minute gigs - hence this _spectacular_ spot as an evening act on a cruise," he explained with a self-deprecating smirk. "Although I am glad to be putting an ocean between myself and the Titans."

Tim's levity was fading fast. "Was it really that bad?"

"They're dangerously disorganized," he recounted, frowning darkly at something he didn't give voice to. Waving a hand to dismiss the topic, he gave Tim a weak smile. "What about you? Your family forced you into this?"

"Not _forced._ Just - they thought I needed - um." Tim blinked and he was supposed to be coming up with a good, safe answer but all he could think of was the Tower, imagining what could have happened there to cause Zatara's reaction. "A change of scenery."

"So they came out here for you?"

"For all of us," Tim shrugged. "Dick's from Bludhaven. And me too, so - we needed this."

"I'm sorry," Zach said instantly, in the way people did whenever they were reminded of a catastrophe that had been great enough to shake a nation. People all over the world had watched the explosion on the news. "I know," he treaded carefully, "that everyone who made it out lost someone."

"My stepmother," Tim answered the undemanding question that was sitting between them. "Friends. Now I'm - Dick's not legally my brother, he's just - family in every other way that counts."

"It's Dick _Grayson,_ isn't it?" he asked in realization. "I thought the older guy with you two looked familiar."

He nodded, fingers patting out an unsteady rhythm on the counter just to have something else to focus on. "Bruce stepped in when I needed someone. He always has."

"That's - good to hear of him. I'm glad you have someone to look out for you. And I'm sorry for your loss."

"Thank you."

"Truly," he said more seriously than Tim had heard him before. "I know what it's like to lose someone. It isn't easy to be the person left behind."

"No," Tim softly agreed, "it isn't."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> On changing eye colors: this became my head canon when artists gave Zach sharply conflicting or ambiguous eye colors in different books (they even once went from green to blue in the same comic). It happens to every character, I know, but come on, doing it to a magician is just teasing!


End file.
